Climate Change

Earth’s climate is naturally dynamic, but human activity is affecting it. Since the Industrial Revolution, we’ve gotten most of our energy from fossil fuels. Burning them releases gases, primarily carbon dioxide, that trap heat in the atmosphere. In the past 100 years, concentrations of this greenhouse gas have grown faster and higher than at any time in the past 850,000 years (and probably much longer), causing global average temperatures to rise. The evidence comes from abundant data collected by many sources over time. We can see it around us in the form of rising sea levels, melting polar ice caps and glaciers, changing ocean chemistry, and more severe heat waves, droughts, and storms. See a full list of Museum resources, programs, and content about climate change here.

Support for the development of Science Topics was generously provided by Sidney and Helaine Lerner, GRACE Communications Foundation.

"Greenhouse effect" and "global warming" are becoming household phrases but how, exactly, are they linked? Explore the interconnections and consequences of climate change. This activity will help students think about the interconnections between climate change and its impact around the world.

Climate has changed throughout Earth's long history. But this time is different. Worldwide temperatures are rising higher and faster than anytime we know of in the past. And this time, human activities are causing it.

Climate has changed throughout Earth's long history. But this time is different. Worldwide temperatures are rising higher and faster than anytime we know of in the past. And this time, human activities are causing it.

Climate change isn’t always slow, small, and imperceptible in a human lifetime. One of the most important lessons from ice core analysis is that Earth’s climate in some places can also change rapidly and dramatically, such as a 15-degree temperature change in a decade. This, you’d notice.

Climate change isn’t always slow, small, and imperceptible in a human lifetime. One of the most important lessons from ice core analysis is that Earth’s climate in some places can also change rapidly and dramatically, such as a 15-degree temperature change in a decade. This, you’d notice.

As the leading greenhouse gas, carbon dioxide is one of the atmosphere’s most closely watched ingredients. The scrutiny began in 1958, when a young geochemist named Charles Keeling began regularly measuring CO2 atop a massive Hawaiian volcano—and discovered some intriguing patterns.

A new dance created specifically for the Milstein Hall of Ocean Life aims to bring the implications of climate disruption home.

Blog Post

Making Climate Change Personal

On the Nature of Things, choreographed by Karol Armitage, was inspired by biologist Paul Ehrlich’s writings about climate change. The result is a one-of-a-kind performance that explores the issue of climate change in a cultural context. Watch a video about Armitage’s inspiration and read more about the premiere here.

Signs of climate change are hard to ignore when you live on an island that is being slowly overtaken by the ocean, as anthropologist Jenny Newell and Tina Stege discuss in this October 2014 program.

Podcast

SciCafe: Islands at the Edge

In this SciCafe, Jennifer Newell, curator of Pacific ethnography, and Tina Stege of the Marshallese Educational Initiative discuss how island life is being affected by the rising seas. Watch the video or listen to the podcast here.

As Arctic sea ice melts earlier and freezes later each year, polar bears have a limited amount of time to hunt their historically preferred prey—ringed seal pups—and must spend more time on land. Read this 2014 story about research by Museum scientists on the changing polar bear diet.

The 2014 IRIS lecture looks at the factors behind the increase in earthquakes on ice sheets and glaciers since the 1990s.

Podcast

Glacial Earthquakes

Dr. Meredith Nettles, associate professor of Earth and Environmental Sciences at Columbia University, discusses the increasing number of earthquakes that occur on ice sheets and glaciers, and shows how new data allows us to learn how the ice is affected by changing environments. Listen to the podcast.

In 2013-2014, Museum anthropologists brought groups of New Yorkers and Samoans together to share insights about the personal impacts of climate change.

Article

Rethinking Home: Climate Change in NY and Samoa

Between September 2013 and July 2014, a group of Samoans and New Yorkers, with homes in coastal areas impacted by hurricanes, worked together to share and learn from their experiences of climate change. Read the participants’ blog posts and find other resources here.

A 2013 study by Museum scientists suggests rising temperatures will lead to massive “greening” of the Arctic by mid-century.

Blog Post

New Model Predicts Greener Arctic

A team of scientists that included researchers from the Museum’s Center for Biodiversity and Conservation used statistical modeling to show that as temperatures continue to rise, plant growth in Arctic ecosystems will also increase—potentially leading to faster warming. Read the blog post.

Consequences of Climate Change

Potential consequences of climate change include loss of biodiversity, destruction of terrestrial ecosystems, spread of human infectious and respiratory diseases, changes in ocean chemistry that disrupt the marine food chain and destroy tropical coral reefs, extreme and unusual weather events, drought due to warming and changing weather patterns, and rising sea level. Read more here. This essay was developed for Week 6 of the AMNH online course Climate Change, part of Seminars on Science, a program of online graduate-level professional development courses for K-12 educators.

Explore the science, history, and impact of climate change in this 2008 special exhibition.

Special Exhibition

Climate Change: The Threat to Life and A New Energy Future

Earth’s climate is changing. Global temperature is rising, weather patterns are shifting, and other effects may be on our horizon. Learn about how climate change affects the atmosphere, ocean, ice, and land in this exhibition curated by Edmond Mathez, curator in the Department of Earth and Planetary Sciences. Learn more here.

Learn about the difference between weather and climate, and find out about how climate has changed over time, in the Gottesman Hall of Planet Earth.

Exhibit Object

What Causes Climate and Climate Change?

Many factors influence climate: the amount of sunlight, the condition of the atmosphere, the oceans, the solid Earth, the great ice sheets, and life itself. Learn more in this section of the Gottesman Hall of Planet Earth.

Data from the GRACE satellites allow scientists to see how fresh water is being redistributed across the continents over time. The GRACE data visualization shows changes in total freshwater storage across the landscape for the period January 2007 to March 2009, relative to the average amount of water at that location during this period.

Rainstorms help sustain life on Earth by bringing much needed water. But there's a big difference between a restorative shower and an intense downpour that causes floods and landslides. As our planet continues to warm, intense and destructive storms are likely to become more and more frequent over many land regions. In fact, they already have.

Rainstorms help sustain life on Earth by bringing much needed water. But there's a big difference between a restorative shower and an intense downpour that causes floods and landslides. As our planet continues to warm, intense and destructive storms are likely to become more and more frequent over many land regions. In fact, they already have.

Learn how simple choices multiplied by everyone in your community can make a big difference. Planting a tree, driving less and changing your bulbs are just a few ways you can help reduce CO2 emissions.

An interview with eminent climatologist James Hansen about the politicization of climate science, the challenge of educating the public, and his research priorities.

Seminars on Science

Jim Hansen Video Interview

An interview with eminent climatologist James Hansen about the politicization of climate science, the challenge of educating the public, and his research priorities. Watch here. This video was developed for Week 6 of the AMNH online course Climate Change, part of Seminars on Science, a program of online graduate-level professional development courses for K-12 educators.

We think of climate as a system. The parts of this system are the atmosphere, the ocean, the biosphere, the cryosphere, and the solid Earth. All these parts interact both chemically and physically to produce a climate that is both complex and dynamic but also characterized by long periods of stability.

Seminars on Science

Atmospheric Circulation and Global Climate Change

We think of climate as a system. The parts of this system are the atmosphere, the ocean, the biosphere, the cryosphere, and the solid Earth. All these parts interact both chemically and physically to produce a climate that is both complex and dynamic but also characterized by long periods of stability. Read more here. This essay was developed for Week 1 of the AMNH online course Climate Change, part of Seminars on Science, a program of online graduate-level professional development courses for K-12 educators.

Research suggests global warming isn't increasing the number of hurricanes, but is likely to increase their average strength. This video features Chris Landsea, Science and Operations Officer at NOAA's National Hurricane Center in Miami, Florida.

Seminars on Science

Does a Warmer World Make Hurricanes Stronger?

Research suggests global warming isn't increasing the number of hurricanes, but is likely to increase their average strength. This video features Chris Landsea, Science and Operations Officer at NOAA's National Hurricane Center in Miami, Florida. Watch here. This NOAA video is featured in the AMNH online course Climate Change, part of Seminars on Science, a program of online graduate-level professional development courses for K-12 educators.

Hot times in Earth's past may presage the future impact of global warming.

Science Bulletins

PETM: Unearthing Ancient Climate Change

Hot times in Earth's past may presage the future impact of global warming. Watch here. This Science Bulletins video is featured in the AMNH online course Climate Change, part of Seminars on Science, a program of online graduate-level professional development courses for K-12 educators.

Conservation experts discuss rising sea levels and implications for islands, including the recovery of New York and surrounding areas after Hurricane Sandy, in this 2013 panel discussion.

Podcast

Islands in a Changing World: Resilience and Recovery

Moderator Lynn Sherr, former “20/20” correspondent, was joined by panelists Stuart Gaffin, research scientist at the Center for Climate Systems Research at Columbia University; Philip Kramer, director of The Nature Conservancy’s Caribbean Program; and Seth W. Pinsky, president of the New York City Economic Development Corporation and leader of New York City’s Special Initiative for Rebuilding and Resiliency, to discuss the effects of climate change on islands. Listen to the podcast.

Arctic Sea Ice: The New Normal

The seasonal ice covering the Arctic Ocean reached a historic low in September 2012. Watch this 2013 data visualization to learn what the disappearance of old, thick ice means for future Arctic warming and about some other far-reaching effects of ice loss.

What are humans to do with the billions of tons of carbon dioxide we release into the atmosphere? Find out new approaches to storing excess gas in this 2013 video.

Science Bulletins

Storing CO2 to Protect the Climate

Since 1996, an experiment in the North Sea has been injecting millions of tons of excess carbon dioxide captured from natural gas drilling back into the Earth for safe storage. The technology is gaining ground as a viable innovation to help combat climate change. Watch the video to learn more.

Follow scientist-adventurer Lonnie Thompson to the 5,670-meter-high Quelccaya ice cap in the Peruvian Andes in this 2005 documentary about unravelling the past to predict the future of climate change.

Science Bulletins

Archived in Ice: Rescuing the Climate Record

Lonnie Thompson and his team from Ohio State University race to core a cylinder of 1,500-year-old ice in the Peruvian Andes to unravel the past climate patterns of this region before it melts. By analyzing global ice cores, glaciologists like Thompson now have a well-preserved record for 150,000 years of climate history, allowing us to better predict future climate change. Watch the video and read more about the project.